This invention relates to polyamide filaments having improved properties including increased fiber strength, dyeability, and cohesiveness; and a method of producing the filaments.
Polyamide filaments and yarns made therefrom have excellent mechanical, chemical, and aesthetic properties and, thus, find widespread use in the home and industry, including carpets, drapery material, upholstery, and clothing.
In a conventional prior art process for preparing polyamide filaments, molten polyamide is extruded through spinnerette orifices into a quench zone, such as a vertical tower, to form filaments which are then cooled to a non-tacky state by a cross-flow of air. The solidified filaments are then withdrawn from the quench zone, lubricated, and then either wound up for further processing or further processed such as by drawing, texturing, etc., prior to being wound up (continuous process).
Many of the polyamide filaments and resulting yarns produced from conventional processes have been found to be deficient in certain properties, i.e., strength, residual shrinkage, cohesiveness, dyeability, etc.
The combined objective of polyamide filaments having good strength, acceptable dyeability and cohesiveness is somewhat irreconcilable in many of the prior art processes. An improvement in one of the properties many times comes about through some compromise of another. Similarly, opposed interactions are also found when attempting to optimize properties.
The present invention involves polyamide filaments having the improved combination of properties, yarns made therefrom, and a method of making the filaments.